First, I want to give credit where credit is due. A number of these thoughts were taken from a sermon by Pastor Mark Jeske of the Time of Grace ministries.
Text: 1Corinthians 6: 9-11
Gay marriage is here. So says the Supreme Court of our land. So says 5 men and women in a black robes- a slim majority. By now you’ve heard the pundits comment for and against. We’ve had to swallow that big judicial pill. Gay marriage is here.
Maybe it wasn’t such a shock to you since California was already heading down that road. What else is new? What’s new is that a state like Texas or Florida now can’t say no. Every state must allow same sex marriage, want to or not.
It’s a big deal. It’s a big deal legally. Many of our nation’s laws will change. It’s a big deal socially- what 20, 30 years ago was unheard of will now become commonplace. Of course, public schools were already teaching this view of marriage and family. But now our schools have license to say, Gay marriage is normal, even good.
How are we to react? A pastor posed the question? Is this a hill to die on? Should we speak up or is it better to keep our mouths shut. As Christians and Christian churches. Is it that important? Is this a hill to die on?
But before we answer that question we need to ask ourselves another. Think about it. After the Supreme Court announced its decision, the rainbow colored signs began to appear. What did they say? Many celebrated with two words. Love wins.
But here’s the question. Did it? Did love really win? As God’s people we need to answer that question. We want to believe and do the loving thing for everyone. But to answer that question we need to look to God’s Word. We need to look to the One who created us and understand his good and loving will for our lives. We need to look to the one whose love for us is more than we can get our arms around. A love that did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, So Gay marriage is here.
Did Love Really Win?
Here I want to spend some time with you in 1Corinthians chapter 6. Paul wrote this letter to Christians who lived in Greece which was then part of the Roman Empire. In some ways, those times were not that different from our own. It was written to Christians living in a culture gone crazy, where they were the counterculture. Think about that. For a long time in our country, Christian faith and values were generally accepted. They defined much of what was considered moral or immoral. But we can’t count on that any more in our land. More and more Christianity is becoming the counterculture. So these words to the Christian brothers and sisters in Corinth have a lot to say to us who live in our own confusing time.
In chapter 7, Jesus’ apostle speaks about marriage, divorce and being single. He says, it’s good to be married but also good to be single. So if you’re married that’s ok, if you’re single that’s ok, more than ok. Wherever God has placed you in life, he has blessing. And he has good works for you to do. Or as someone once said: bloom where you are planted.
But back to chapter 6. Paul begins with something reported to him. Lawsuits among believers. You see, one reason outsiders are drawn to a Christian congregation is the love and the peace they witness among us. But when people see Christians at odds with one another, no different than out there, why would they want anything to do with us? Some of these Christians were acting like that and worse. When they felt they were wronged by their brother, they sued their brother in court. That was to their shame, Paul told them.
Then Paul bridges over to where we are going today. He says in verse 9: Or do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God. You heard that word, wicked, sometimes translated as wrongdoers or the unrighteous. But haven’t we all done wrong? Haven’t we all sinned and still do? What is Paul saying? He saying, he’s warning these Christians not to commit spiritual suicide. For if we live our lives in sin with no repentance, we will not enter God’s heaven. When we die, God will have nothing to do with us. Here I think of the warning in the letter to the Hebrews. If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left. (10:26) So don’t be deceived, Paul says.
You see, Satan is the ultimate con man. He knows how to make evil look good, even attractive. And think about the way Satan works. If your job was to tempt people and pry them away from God, how would you come at them? Sex is a good place to start. The husband or wife miserable from a lack of love. The single person tempted to go to bed or live with his girlfriend. Then there is the person who has an attraction to the same sex. Sex is a big way Satan gets after us.
But not just sex. Also money. The desire for more and more. That too can bring about spiritual suicide when someone has no room for God in his heart. Only money and what it can buy.
Then our mouths and the words we are tempted to say. Satan loves when our words tear down someone’s reputation. He loves us to pass on those choice morsels of gossip. Did you hear? And it can feel so good.
Then of course, Satan tries to just plain disconnect us from the Lord. The Corinthians had friends and relatives that worshiped idols in the temples around town. Come on. And for us, Satan has plenty of other ways to pull our hearts away from God, if we let him.
So here comes what I heard someone describe as the terrible ten. Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. I know we’re talking about gay marriage but let’s not overlook some things here. First that homosexuality is just one of a number of lifestyles mentioned here. It’s not the only form of spiritual suicide. Think of the sexually immoral- pornoi in Greek. It means any kind of sex outside of marriage. That’s just as dangerous to our souls. Just as dangerous to our souls as greed or drunkenness, or slander.
But today look at what the Holy Spirit says about those who live the gay lifestyle. Our NIV does not do a great job of translating here. I don’t want to get into the graphic detail of the words. I’d rather just go with how the NIV 2011 translates: Men who have sex with men. In no uncertain terms Paul warns those who live like that. They will not inherit the kingdom of God.
So is this a hill to die on? You bet it is! And not because gay marriage is a threat to our marriage. The biggest threat to our marriage is you and me. The way we live. No, this is a hill to die on for the sake of souls, souls for which Jesus shed his blood on a cross.
So did love win when gay marriage became the law of the land?
There’s a lot of people who think so. Even our president with his rainbow lit white house.
But they are deceived. Sadly deceived. So we need to speak the truth in love no matter the cost and there will be. We need to speak the truth first to ourselves and then to others. For before anything else we need to repent. We need to change for the better. We need to love people where they are at as Jesus did. Remember how they mocked Jesus for going to the prostitutes and tax collectors? We need to love people where they are at not shun them and drive them further into that lifestyle. We need to love people where they are at and then lead them to know the truth that will set them free from whatever sinful trap they are caught in.
And here comes the hope. 11 And that is what some of you were. Paul writes. Were. Past tense. Some were thieves. Some were adulterers. Some were living in homosexual sin. Some were. But they repented and found forgiveness and hope in Christ.
There is a young man who came to speak to us a few years back at living Word. Scott Barefoot. Years ago, Scott was caught up in the gay lifestyle like some of us were caught up in other things. But God rescued him and led him to repentance and brought him back into his fold.
And now Scott travels our country speaking about his experience and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. And here we can say thanks be to God. As we gather around Jesus’ cross, we can rejoice with Scott. For this is true for each of you. You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. You and me and countless others. Forgiven, set free and made new in Jesus Christ. And it’s there, Love won. God’s love in Christ. May it still win others. Amen.